Washington (CNN) - The Pentagon will announce Wednesday it is entering into a contract with the Fisher House to ensure families of the fallen are paid the death benefits they are due but have not received because of the government shutdown, a senior Defense Department official told CNN.

The Fisher House, a group that offers assistance to families of troops in need, has agreed to cover the expenses for all families of the fallen and the government will reimburse the organization once the shutdown is over, the official said.FULL POST

(CNN) - President Barack Obama was disturbed to learn that death benefits were not being paid to survivors of fallen military service members as a result of the shutdown and has directed the Pentagon, the Office of Management and Budget and the White House lawyers to figure out a way to address the problem, White House spokesman Jay Carney said Wednesday.

(CNN) - The Pentagon will permit members of the military to travel to wed same-sex partners if the community or state where they are based does not permit it, a key element of a new benefits policy unveiled Wednesday.

The Defense Department announced its intention to extended health, housing and other benefits to same-sex spouses of uniformed military personnel and defense civilian employees.

(CNN) - Marine Corps MV-22 Ospreys, aircraft that take off vertically, provided a dramatic new look for President Barack Obama's travel detail as he and the first lady began a Martha's Vineyard vacation on Saturday.

The Ospreys - making their presidential debut - shuttled White House staff, media and Secret Service members from Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod.

Editor's note: Jake Tapper is an anchor and chief Washington correspondent for CNN. He is author of the best-selling book about Afghanistan, "The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor."

It was a devastating Taliban attack, launched on an eastern Afghanistan outpost positioned so poorly it was nearly indefensible. Combat Outpost Keating was tucked in a valley surrounded by towering mountains.

On October 3, 2009, 300 insurgents used the high ground to stage an overwhelming assault on just 53 U.S. troops.

“Just every kind of weapon they could get their hands on they were throwing at us, and we hadn't seen that before,” said Spc. Tom Rasmussen.

Eight men died, but there were heart stopping heroics to defend the base.

Staff Sgt. Clint Romesha was already awarded the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest honor for his bravery in the face of overwhelming odds during the battle.

(CNN) – Even as the automatic spending cuts of the sequester continue to lack the major repercussions originally anticipated, there will be a glaring example of their impacts visible above many U.S. military bases this Independence Day.

Multiple bases, including Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii and North Carolina's Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base have been forced to cancel their July 4 fireworks displays in order to save money, according to Time.FULL POST

(CNN) - Calling sexual assault in the military "an enemy to morale and readiness," Sen. James Inhofe urged his colleagues on the Senate Armed Services committee to tread carefully in tackling the issue.

Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, said he is opposed to any legislation "removing commanders from their indispensable roles" in the military justice system and noted that military and civilian courts are different animals because members of the military do not enjoy the same rights as civilians.

(CNN) - President Barack Obama gave a special salute Monday to Americans who lost their lives fighting in the Korean War, noting the upcoming 60th anniversary of the conflict's end, and asked Americans to remember the troops' work in Afghanistan as that war winds down.

"Last Memorial Day, I stood here and spoke about how, for the first time in nine years, Americans were no longer fighting and dying in Iraq. Today, a transition is under way in Afghanistan, and our troops are coming home," the president said after laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns. "This time next year, we will mark the final Memorial Day of our war in Afghanistan."